Dagger of the Mind (episode)
Series: TOS Season: 1 Original Airdate: 1966-11-03 Production Number: 10 Year: 2266 Stardate: 2715.1 Story by: S. Bar-David Directed by: Vincent McEveety Kirk investigates a revolutionary new machine that rehabilitates violent criminals. Summary While on a routine visit to the Tantalus Penal Colony, the ''Enterprise'' takes on a stowaway, the violently insane Doctor Simon Van Gelder, former associate of Tantalus administrator Doctor Tristan Adams. Required by regulations to investigate Van Gelder's injury, Kirk visits the colony with psychiatrist Doctor Helen Noel. Adams tells them Van Gelder injured his mind by misusing an experimental therapy device, the neural neutralizer. On board the Enterprise, Spock and McCoy continue to investigate Van Gelder, whose ravings are difficult to decipher. Spock is forced to employ an ancient technique, the Vulcan mind meld, to learn the truth Van Gelder cannot speak aloud. He learns that Adams has been experimenting on various individuals, including Van Gelder. At the colony, Kirk and Noel investigate the neural neutralizer privately. Kirk wants first hand experience with the device. With Kirk in the treatment chair, Noel implants some simple suggestions. They learn the device is far more effective than Adams had led them to believe, but this knowledge comes too late: Adams surprises them, immobilizes Noel, and begins using the device to condition Kirk. Fighting off the suggestions placed in his mind by Adams, Kirk dispatches Noel through the air conditioning ducts, in the hope she can find the power controls and deactivate the security force field. That field protects the facility, and prevents transporters from operating in it. Noel manages to deactivate the field long enough for Spock and a security force to beam down and secure the colony. In an ironic twist, Dr. Adams dies of exposure to the neural neutralizer. Dr. Van Gelder is cured, and resumes his responsibilities at the colony. He also dismantles and destroyes the neural neutralizer equipment. Quotes :Spock: "Interesting. You Earth people glorify organized violence for forty centuries. But you imprison those who employ it privately." Background Information "Dagger of the Mind" marked the first appearance of the Vulcan mind meld. This episode is mentioned as taking place after a Christmas party in the science labs. This is one of the few times a religious holiday is mentioned in the Star Trek future. Chiristmas in particular was never heard of again until Star Trek: Generations. Writer S. Bar-David is a pen name for Shimon Wincelberg. The part of Helen Noel was originally written for Grace Lee Whitney's character Janice Rand, however, producers wanted to avoid showing Kirk becoming involved with her, and Grace Lee Whitney was already on the verge of leaving the show due to personal problems on the set. The title of this episode is taken from a line of Shakespeare's play Macbeth. Macbeth is preparing to murder his king, and sees a dagger that he attempts to grasp, only to discover it is a figment of his imagination. This episode has two fairly glaring weaknesses that detract from it. First, the notion that patients in an insane asylum would be able to easily move even to restricted, dangerous areas via the air conditioning ductwork. Security at a facility for dangerous, violent people would be tighter than this. Second, the character of Tristan Adams spends twenty years humanizing and reforming penology, to the point where his reputation is well established even outside his field. And yet, one day, for no reason shared with the viewers, he elects to begin unethical experiments on patients and guests alike. This strains credulity. Links and References Guest Stars *James Gregory as Doctor Tristan Adams *Marianna Hill as Doctor Helen Noel *Morgan Woodward as Doctor Simon Van Gelder *Larry Anthony as Ensign Berkeley *Suzanne Wasson as Lethe *Eli Behar as Eli (a Tantalus therapist) *John Arndt as Crewman Fields *Walter Davis as a Tantalus therapist *Ed McCready as a Tantalus inmate :Morgan Woodward (Van Gelder) would go on to portray Captain Ronald Tracey in TOS:"The Omega Glory." The character of the orderly played by Eli Behar is not named in the script, but in one scene Dr. Adams calls him "Eli." John Arndt (Fields) was a regular extra, he also played unnamed crewmen in TOS:"Miri" and TOS:"Space Seed." When Arndt appeared in TOS:"Balance of Terror," his character was named Fields. James Gregory (Adams) was later seen as General Ursus in Beneath The Planet Of The Apes. References 2266; Tristan Adams; Berkeley; Central Bureau of Penology; Christmas; Eli; Fields; force field; infra-sensory drugs; hyperpower circuitry; Lethe; neural neutralizer; Helen Noel; Stockholm; Tantalus V; Tantalus Penal Colony; Vulcan mind meld; Simon Van Gelder. Previous episode: What Are Little Girls Made Of? Episodes of Star Trek: The Original Series Next Episode: Miri